Week of 11/28/11

SIXTH GRADE:

We are continuing our study of Egypt this week. The students will be participating in a poster museum walk about the Egyptian gods and goddesses. On Thursday, we will be discussing the New Kingdom and its rise as an empire and military empire.

The students will receive a study guide for the test on Egypt which will be held during the finals period the week before break. Students should use this study guide to prepare for the test. I recommend creating matching flash cards and practice for writing the short answer responses. Any students who are experiencing difficulty with the material are welcome to come see me for help.

SEVENTH GRADE:

This week we are wrapping up our study of Africa. The students are learning about the pilgrimage of Mansa Musa and its impact on Western Africa. Later this week we will begin an in-class activity about African Proverbs. On Tuesday, the students will receive a study guide for a quiz which will be held given next Tuesday. The quiz will have 3 short answer questions. I encourage the students to use the study guide to prepare for this quiz. They are welcome to come see me with any questions they might have.

There will be NO final exam for this class. We will be beginning our unit on China and the students will be participating in a class activity.

Week Of 10/31/11

Sixth Grade:
This week we begin our study of Egypt! On Monday the students will watch a short video clip of a journey down the Nile River and we will discuss the importance of the river in this civilization. We will talk about the gifts of the Nile River and get an overview of the history of the Egyptian Civilization.

REMINDER: Students should have a set of their own colored pencils they bring to class each day. I do have some class sets, but the students have not been taking care of them, and I may have to remove them if it does not improve. Please ensure your student has colored pencils to bring to class each day. If this is not financially possible, please email me and let me know. I have some donations I can share.

Seventh Grade:
This week we will begin our discussion of West Africa. We will be specifically focusing on the Kingdoms of Ghana and Mali. The students will begin with a discussion of the geography of Africa, the difficulty of crossing the Sahara Desert, and why people would make this dangerous journey during the middle ages.

PARENT HOURS:
There are a few things I could use for our classroom and for an upcoming fundraiser.
1. $5 gift cards to Jamba Juice, Big Spoon, or Coldstone for student of the month awards
2. Regular size file folders for portfolio storage
3. Your left over Halloween candy: 1 gallon size ziploc bag=1 hour. (please no eyeballs or scary candy.)
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Week of 10/17/11

Seventh Grade:
This week we will be performing our commercials about the achievements of the Islamic Empire. When those presentations are complete we will examine the unique culture of Islamic Spain. We will discuss the concept of diversity and the benefits of embracing diversity.

Sixth Grade:
This week we will finish our study of Mesopotamia and begin our study of Ancient Egypt. We will begin by examining the geography of the region and will discuss why the Nile River was considered a "gift" from the Gods. Your students should be working on their final project for Mesopotamia at home. Please see the post below regarding that project.

SIXTH GRADE PROJECT

The sixth graders are currently working on a project about Mesopotamia. The students were required to have their introduction page of their project done today. You can look in powerschool to see if that was completed. If the student's score is a 0 that means they did not have the assignment completed today. The project is not due until October 25th, so I will be assigning checkpoints along the way to ensure the students are not procrastinating this assignment. You can check on their status by looking at the checkpoints on powerschool. It is worth 90 points and is the unit project for our study of Mesopotamia.

Week of 10/10/11

Sixth Grade:
The students finished their posters on the Sumerian achievements and will be completing a museum walk in the classroom. They will be examining the posters which will contain information about the Sumerian achievements and they will be identifying how these achievements fit under the characteristics of a civilization. After the museum walk we will begin to discuss the Babylonians with an emphasis on Hammurabi's Code of Law.

Seventh Grade:
This week we will begin to examine how the death of Muhammad affected the growth of the Islamic religion and empire. We will discuss the first four caliphs, the movement of the Islamic capital cities and we will begin to discuss the cultural and scientific achievements of the Islamic Empire.